Burnt Muffins
by Luminaria2345
Summary: When a horrible accident happens, will Derpy Hooves be able to cope with her loss? How will this affect her grip on sanity?
1. Just A Ditsy Morning

It was a beautiful day in the world of Equestria. Throughout the land, the sun shone bright and all the animals had come out to play. In a remote village, the citizens of Ponyville were all out enjoying the beautiful weather. Some were setting up stands to sell products for their businesses, others were walking through the park whilst young fillies and colts frolicked and played with their friends.

One certain pony however was still lying fast asleep in bed.

"Mum, come on, get up, you're gonna be late again." A young sounding voice emerged from a small purple-grey unicorn filly with a blonde mane and tail.

"Just five more minutes."

Dinky Hooves rolled her eyes. "No mum, now, it's nine o clock."

The greyish mare sleeping in the bed shot up, her blonde mane sticking out at all angles. Her amber eyes focused in different directions. "Nine o clock? Well why didn't you say so Dinks?" Derpy Hooves rolled out of bed and teetered into the bathroom.

Dinky stifled a grin; this was a normal morning for her and her mum. Her mum was quite different from the other ponies. Her eyes were always looking in different directions, and she could be quite the clumsy pony. But Dinky wouldn't change her for the world. She lived at home in Ponyville with Derpy and her big sister Sparkler. Sparkler was a beautiful pink unicorn with a short purple mane and tail. Her cutie mark was three clear diamonds, a talent at gem crafting that Dinky was almost jealous of. She walked over to her room and peeked her head round the corner. Sparkler was stood in front of a mirror, levitating a brush which she was carefully running through her mane.

"Mum awake?"

"Yeah, I just managed to get her up."

The two sisters shared a giggle. Sparkler set the brush down and levitated some saddlebags over her back.

"Well I gotta get going; I'm helping Rarity at the boutique today with some gems for her outfits. I'll see you later." She bent down and gave Dinky a nuzzle before heading out the door. Dinky trotted back into the living room to see her mum dashing around.

"Uh, lost something mum?"

"Have you seen my mailbag anywhere?"

Dinky bit her bottom lip before bursting out laughing. "It's on your back mummy!"

Derpy swung round and blushed. "Oh so it is. Hehe. I'd be losing my wings if they weren't attached to my body!"

Derpy worked as Ponyville's mail mare. Whilst she sometimes got the mail muddled up, she took her job seriously and did well at it. She lowered herself down to ground level.

"Well I gotta be off! You be a good girl ok?"

Dinky wrapped Derpy in a hug. "I will mummy."

Derpy kissed her forehead. "There's a good girl, I'll see you soon."

Dinky sat and watched her mum fly away till she was out of sight. She then shut the front door and wandered back into the living room.

* * *

><p>She sat for a while, pondering what to do. She'd had fun before playing with Sparkler's make up, but her sister wasn't too impressed when she got home. She wandered into the kitchen and instantly noticed the mess. Whilst Derpy may have been an incredible muffin maker, she was terrible at tidying up. A thought hit her.<p>

"I should clean the kitchen for her, she'd be so proud!" She exclaimed, to nopony in particular. She easily located some cleaning supplies in a cupboard under the sink and set to work.

First she wiped all the work surfaces till they so clean that Dinky could see her face in them. Then she washed up some trays and pots and put them away in their correct places. Dinky knew the kitchen well; she'd often sit and watch her mum making muffins. She then proceeded to mop the floor.

'Mummy will be so happy!' she mused to herself.

After that she looked around, wondering what else she could clean. Her attention was drawn to the large oven that her mum used for cooking. It was bigger than an average oven, even big enough to fit a small pony in, so that Derpy could cook several things at once. Making sure it was turned off, Dinky stuck her head inside.

"Sure is dirty in here." She poked at a burnt bit on one of the shelves. "A nice clean oven is just what mummy needs!" Grabbing a couple of cloths and a scrubbing brush, she carefully climbed inside. She could stand up inside and clear the top of the oven with about two to three inches from her horn. The door shut behind her, but she took no notice, she could just open it again when she was done. What Dinky didn't hear was the click of a latch.

"Wow this black stuff is hard to get off." Raising herself to her back two hooves, she scrubbed harder against the wall of the oven. She moved round and continued scrubbing but felt a sharp pain enter the bottom of one of her hooves. Stumbling, she hit the side of the oven, causing it to give out a large creaking sound. She sat down and looked at the bottom of her foot. Thankfully it was only minor; she had just stepped on a stub on one of the shelves. As she stood up the oven gave another groan like sound and Dinky could hear what sounded something like gears churning.

'This doesn't sound healthy, maybe I should leave it till mummy gets home.' she thought. She went to the door and pressed against it. Nothing. She pushed again, but it still wouldn't open. A slight sweat began to form on her brow. Looking through the misty oven door, she could make out that the latch had fallen down. She turned around and bucked it using all the strength in her back legs, but it still didn't budge. She sat down.

"Great. Looks like I'm stuck here till mummy gets home."

She lifted a hoof to her head and wiped off a bit of sweat.

"Is it me, or is it getting hot in here?"


	2. That Burning Feeling

Dinky's mouth hung open slightly as she started panting. She turned around to try and buck the door again when horror wrote itself across her face. The oven had turned on and the inside was just started to glow orange. More sweat started to gather from the panic and the heat. She bucked the door again but it still wouldn't open.

"No no no…this isn't happening…"

She threw herself against the door but still the same result. The oven was quickly heating up and she couldn't find a way out, she let out a small screech as she bumped her flank against the now burning hot sides. Tears began to stream from her eyes as she banged her hooves desperately against the door.

"Help! Somepony HELP ME!"

Her hopes were lost; Derpy and Sparkler wouldn't be back for hours and it was highly unlikely that some random pony would just walk into her house.

She smelt a burning coming from her tail; the ends were beginning to singe and turn black, just like her mane was. She flailed against the door with all her might, soon tiring herself out. The heat was now becoming painful to her skin and it was getting incredibly hot to stand on the shelf she was on. Her legs wobbling underneath her, she threw her hooves limply at the door again, tears streaming only to be soon evaporated by the heat.

"Somepony….help…"

With a churning sound, the oven heated up even more, resulting in another screech from Dinky. The heat felt as though it was ripping her skin apart and the pain was becoming unbearable. She had to shut her eyes as the heat began to take over. Her mane and tail were singed off and her skin was started to go brown and black. She fell down on the shelf, screaming for her life, her breathing becoming near impossible. With another clunk, Dinky set ablaze, letting a blood curling scream escape. Her screams became coarser and coarser, till eventually all that could be heard was the humming of a working oven.

* * *

><p>Derpy fumbled though her bag outside the front door. Eventually locating her keys, she set them in the lock and opened the door.<p>

"Dinky, I'm home!"

The grey mail mare awaited the sound of pattering hooves as her daughter ran up to her to give her a loving hug, but none came. Instead she could smell something. It smelt like something burning.

"Burning?" A streak of worry set itself across her face. "No…I'm sure she was just doing some easy baking."

Setting her bag down, she trotted towards the kitchen. The smell became stronger and also worse. It was a sort of rotting smell, combined with the smell of burning. She trotted faster until she emerged into the kitchen. The place was spotless – but Dinky was nowhere to be seen. Instead, a slight stream of smoke was coming from the oven. With a slight cough, she trotted over to see that it was on. She abruptly turned it off whilst looking around for Dinky.

'Maybe she was cooking something and went upstairs and forgot about it…' Grabbing an oven glove, she opened the door, prepared to take whatever Dinky was burning out. She kicked open the latch letting the door swing open. The oven glove dropped from her hoof and landed on the floor as Derpy froze. Her head felt dizzy and she had to step back. Inside the oven was not a burnt muffin, pie or cupcake. It was much bigger. The hooves of the corpse distinguished it as a pony, with an all too familiar small unicorn horn protruding from the top. The blackened corpse laid there, its empty eyes staring at her. Her bottom lip wobbled uncontrollably. Her legs shook violently and gave way from underneath her. The smell wandered up her nostrils but now she knew what it was. Death.

She couldn't take it anymore. She ran from the room, tears flowing, and her pupils small. She only made it to the living room before she collapsed again.

"No! That's not my Dinky! She isn't dead! This is just a bad dream!" Her voice shouted out, echoing across the room. She was shaking too much to get up, her coat drenched with sweat and tears. Every time she got a whiff of the smell, the image of the burning corpse came into her head. She tried shutting her eyes to get it out but it didn't work. Her youngest daughter had been burned alive.

* * *

><p>Rainbow Dash was flying above Ponyville when she heard a racket. She quickly located it coming from Derpy's house.<p>

"What's she destroyed this time?"

She levelled off over Ponyville before dropping to the ground outside her house. The door was wide open so she let herself in. She could hear heavy sobs coming from one of the rooms, and the most awful stench coming from another. Putting a hoof to her nose she followed the sound of the crying. In the centre of the living room, Derpy was rocking back and forth. Her blonde mane was bedraggled and her eyes were extremely red and puffy. In between sobs she was muttering the occasional word. Rainbow strained to hear what she was saying.

"Dinky…no…" She burst out crying again.

Rainbow decided to speak up. Whatever had happened had obviously got Derpy in a state of shock. Though judging by the smell it was likely to be that she burnt some muffins or something.

"Derpy? Are you ok?"

Derpy swung round, her bloodshot eyes piercing Rainbow's.

"Rainbow Daaaash!" In an instant, she had flung her arms around Rainbow, burying her head in her shoulder and crying into her mane. Rainbow pulled her round to the front of her.

"Derpy, what's wrong."

"It's Dinky…oh Dash, something terrible happened!"

"Terrible? Where is she?"

Another haunting image came back, and Derpy could only point as more uncontrollable sobs came on. Letting Derpy down gently she wandered into the kitchen. The stench began a lot stronger. And then Rainbow saw what Derpy meant. The burnt corpse stared at her the same way it did with Derpy.

"HOLY FU-" Rainbow put a hoof to her mouth. Even mangled and burnt, there was no mistaking it as the young unicorn. Trying to hold back her tears, she went back to get Derpy, still crying and shaking.

"Come on Derpy, outside."

Supporting the broken Pegasus, she took her outside, attracting the attention of many passer bys.

"I need somepony to get me the Mayor!"

"Rainbow Dash, what happened?" A familiar voice sounded through the crowd. A purple unicorn dashed forward.

"Long story Twilight, I'll tell you afterwards, but get me the Major quickly!"

Sensing the urgency in her voice, Twilight flashed out to the town hall. In a couple of minutes, she came cantering back with the Major close behind her. By now, ponies from the crowd were comforting Derpy. A couple of ponies, including the Flower Trio were lying down, unable to process what had happened. The smell was starting to wander its way from the house to the surrounding areas of Ponyville. "What is going on?"

A tan mare a white mane and tail ran up to the scene. Rainbow left Derpy with her other concerned friends and came up to Twilight and the Major.

"Something terrible has happened to Dinky Hooves. She's…"

Rainbow grimaced, the image coming back in her mind.

"She's what?"

"Dead."

Twilight and the Major gasped.

"How?"

Some police ponies had arrived on the scene that the Major had called in case of an emergency.

"She's in the kitchen…well…oven to be more precise." Rainbow's voice cracked at the end of her sentence, tears becoming visible in her eyes. Twilight wrapped a hoof over Rainbow's shoulder and pulled her close whilst the Major sent the police ponies into the house. Derpy was still sobbing with a large crowd of ponies gathered around her, trying to put together what had happened.

The stench became stronger as the police ponies came out. Two were carrying a stretcher which had a bundle on the back. Derpy hollered even louder and stumbled back onto the floor. She just couldn't process what was going on. She heard a familiar voice cry through the crowd.

"Mum! What's going on?"

Looking through her teary eyes she noticed a pink unicorn cantering towards her. Sparkler skidded to a halt beside her, panting for breath where she had obviously been running for a while. Derpy threw herself at Sparkler, squeezing her tight and crying even more. Even though she had no idea what was happening, Sparkler began to cry too, seeing her mum so distraught.

"Can I have your attention please?" A megaphone levitated itself in front of one of the police ponies. He was dark blue with an almost jet black mane and tail. He wore the uniform of the official Ponyville police squadron. Everypony fell silent except for Derpy, whose cries kept echoing out throughout the crowd every now and again. She could see them lowering Dinky's burnt corpse into the back of a sealed carriage attached to another police pony.

"I need the crowd to clear please, but I would like Miss Derpy Hooves and close attires to attend to me please!"

The crowd began to slowly walk away and Rainbow went and got the sobbing Derpy. Rarity had just arrived on the scene after following Sparkler. The police pony spoke again.

"Would you four like to accompany me and the Major to the town hall?"

Twilight, Rainbow, Rarity and Sparkler nodded.

"Ok, follow me please."

They walked in silence behind the police pony. The carriage containing Dinky's corpse trotted off to a building behind the town hall.


	3. Case Closed

Twilight felt a hoof gently prod her side.

"Twilight, what's happening?"

Twilight didn't really know Sparkler very well, but she was familiar with her being Derpy's oldest daughter. She had seen her in Carousel Boutique sometimes.

"It's Dinky…she's..."

"Oh Sparkler honey she's dead!" Not being able to maintain her composure anymore Derpy flung herself around her eldest daughter. Sparkler spluttered and almost fell over.

"What? Dead? Mum, how?"

"Can we please leave all questions till we are inside the town hall please, we will discuss then."

The five ponies silenced themselves and continued walking till they reached the town hall. Once inside they went down a corridor that was unfamiliar to them all. They eventually reached a room that had a large table inside with several chairs around it. The walls were a dark green with red carpet. All the furniture was an oak brown.

"Everypony please take a seat."

They all did as they were told. The Major was the first to speak up.

"We've brought you here as a matter to discuss the death of Miss Dinky Hooves. Oh Derpy, would you like some tissues?"

The blonde Pegasus nodded weakly. The Major got up and passed some tissues over her. She continued speaking over the blubbing of her.

"We wish to know as much as possible to what happened to her."

The police pony flipped out a note book and readied his pen.

"Derpy, I know this hurts but I will have to ask you to go first."

"Ok…*sniff* well I was coming back from my mail round and *sniff* I went inside and called for her but she *sniff* didn't come and then I smelt something like burning in the kitchen *sob* and I found Dinky in the oven and she-" Derpy let out a low volume scream before crying again, clenching her eyes shut and burying her head in her hooves.

"It's ok Derpy, any information is helpful. Rainbow Dash. I believe you were next to arrive on scene?"

"Yes ma'am." Rainbow sat tall. She would be as loyal as she could for Derpy, as if loyalty wasn't her element anyway.

"Please tell us your story."

"Well I was flying over Ponyville just practising some stunts when I heard hollering coming from somewhere. I traced the noise back to Derpy's house." Rainbow glanced at the police pony to make sure he was writing her story down. "The front door was open so I walked in and found Derpy in the middle of the floor crying her eyes out. When I asked her what was wrong she just pointed to the kitchen." Rainbow gulped. She knew she had to give them as much as she knew no matter how horrifying. "In the kitchen it absolutely stunk. I went to the oven and there was a corpse of a pony. It was burnt, but it was definitely Dinky Hooves. Even singed, the unicorn horn was all too familiar."

"Stop! Make it go away!"

Attention was drawn to Derpy, who was now cradling her back legs. Her eyes were still clenched shut and she was shaking her head. Rainbow shot to her side.

"Derpy, it's ok, I'm here for you." She put a cyan coloured wing around her and gently rocked her. Even though she was a mother herself, being younger than Rainbow Dash, Rainbow felt it was her duty now to look after her.

"Is that the end of your viewpoint Miss Dash?"

"Yes. Now may I just take Derpy outside for a moment?"  
>The police pony didn't look too impressed by the Major knew trying to continue with Derpy like this wasn't going to help. She nodded and allowed the two to go outside.<p>

"Twilight, what do you know?"

"Not a lot Major. I was doing some shopping around Ponyville when I spotted Rainbow Dash. I went over to say hello and she ran up to me, insisting that I get you. It sounded urgent, so I teleported to you straight away and brought you to the scene."

"I see. And Rarity."

"I'm sorry, but I don't have an awful lot to say. I ran to the scene after Sparkler had took off out of my boutique when a customer told us that something had happened to poor Derpy."

"Ok. Sparkler. Sister of Dinky and daughter of Derpy I am correct?"

…

"Sparkler?"

The pink unicorn stared at the blank wall ahead of her. Her mouth was hung limply and tear streaks were visible down her face. She shook her head. "O...oh me? I'm sorry I just…this is a lot to take in. I don't know what would have possessed Dinky to be inside the oven. I can't believe my little sister is gone…I can't apologise for all the times I messed up as a big sister…I…I'm so sorry Dinky…"

Twilight offered her shoulder for support and Sparkler gratefully accepted it. She leaned, staring at the empty space ahead of her, tears flowing silently down her face. Outside, the gentle sobs of Derpy could still be heard. The police pony spoke up.

"So Dinky has been left home alone before?"

"Yes. She's usually such a responsible young filly."

"Can you describe previous experiences of leaving her at home please?"

Unlike her mum, Sparkler could keep herself relatively calm, even though she was tearing up inside.

"A lot of the time she just plays with toys in her room. She does a lot of drawings too. And one time she did play with my make up, but it isn't like that could do her any harm. She's smart, she knows about potential dangers."

A beeping noise diverted all attention to the radio on the table. A cracked voice spoke through the speaker.

"Officer Blue, we've found potential evidence on the scene."

The police pony put a hoof to the radio and spoke into it. "What it is?"

"We've found cleaning supplies, scrubbing brushes and cloths and general kitchen cleaning artefacts."

"Ok. Report to me if anything else is found."

"Cleaning things!" Sparkler jolted up in her chair. "Dinky loves to make her mum happy; she was probably cleaning the kitchen."

Blue cocked his head. "And something averted her attention to clean the inside of the oven? Whilst in it?"

"Hey! I don't like your tone! My little sister was not stupid! How was she supposed to know it would turn itself on!" Sparkler slammed a hoof down on the table, leaning in and glaring menacingly at the police pony.

"Please Sparkler, calm yourself." The Major mare waved a hoof between the two.

"Turned itself on? I have come to a conclusion that perhaps it did not turn itself on, but rather somePONY turned it on."

"But Derpy would have locked the door after she left. Was there any breakages?"

"No. There were also no hoof prints. However it could have been possible for a Pegasus pony to fly through one of the windows."

"Impossible. The windows in our house are quite old, they don't open. The new ones we invested in upstairs only open a couple of inches, impossible for a Pegasus pony to get in through."

The radio crackled to life again. "Officer we have discovered a fault with the oven. A simple kick can turn it on and the latch on the door is extremely stiff."

"Thank you. That information was quite useful."

He stood up and addressed the group. "It looks like this case is settled. All it would have taken was one kick from the filly for the oven to turn itself on. I believe all evidence you have given me to be true." He took his hat off and held it to his chest. "I am extremely sorry for your loss. You may go now."

"Thank you for coming everypony." The Major got up and opened the door. Rainbow and Derpy were still sat there, but Derpy was beginning to compose herself more. Sparkler dashed forward and embraced her mum in a hug.

"She's really gone…"

"I know mum, I know. But we're going to get through this ok?"

Derpy managed a weak smile. "You're so brave Sparkler. I know Dinky would have been as brave as you one day."

The ponies went outside and were met by a worried crowd. Applejack, Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie stood there, with Spike pacing back and forth nervously. He instantly noticed Twilight come out.

"Twilight!" He ran up to her, hugging her. "I heard something horrible happened."

"Hey Spike. It did, but not to me, I'm fine. It's Derpy."

Whilst the elements of harmony gathered together and talked, a colt dashed forward. He had a dark purple coat with a black mane and tail that held a tinge of purple. His cutie mark was a gem surrounded by stars. He even managed to catch Rarity's eye.

"Sparkler!" He ran up to her, noticing her puffy eyes.

"Oh Dasher, it's awful!" She flung her hooves around him and allowed herself to be pulled close.

"I came as soon as I heard something bad had happened with Derpy. Baby what's wrong?"

"My little sister…she's…gone."

Diamond Dasher's ears fell back and he hugged her tighter. "Sparks…I'm so sorry…"

Twilight filled Pinkie, AJ and Fluttershy in on the details.

"Oh my…that's terrible." Fluttershy flinched, dipping her head down.

"Mum…what do we do now?"

Derpy just looked at her. It was like she was trying to get words out but couldn't. "I can't go back home…"

"Derpy, you can stay with me if you want. I know how hard this must be for you."

"Oh really Dash?" She flew up and grabbed her in an embrace. "Thank you so much. But Sparkler honey-"

"It's ok mum, I can stay with Dasher." She looked to her coltfriend and he nodded. Derpy flew back down to ground level.

"I'll see you around Sparkler. Let's try and get over this. No matter how hard…" Her voice trailed off at the end of the sentence. Sparkler pulled her mum in for a final hug.

"We will mum…and she'll always be in our hearts." She rested her hooves on her shoulders and managed a weak smile. "I'll see you soon."

After saying their goodbyes, Sparkler and Dasher wandered off back to his house.

* * *

><p>"You ready to go then Derpy?"<p>

"Yeah…thanks again Rainbow Dash."

"No prob. We'll see you guys later." With a final wave, they took off into the clouds.

"Well I guess we should all go home now. Come on Spike."

"Ah'll see you later everypony." With a tip of her hat the southern pony cantered off.

"Bye girls!"

They all went off in their separate directions, their minds heavy with the loss of Dinky.


	4. Sleep Tight

Sparkler was silent the whole walk back. Her mind wasn't really paying attention to where she was going; Dasher could have walked into the ocean and her feet would have subconsciously followed. The sky was beginning to darken slightly and a few stars were becoming visible. The sun was steadily beginning it's descent over the hills of Canterlot. They came to Dasher's house; a small but cosy cottage near the outskirts of Ponyville. It was only once the chill of the evening air was lifted from her back did Sparkler snap back to reality. She was instantly met with Dasher's deep blue eyes looking into hers. Her bottom lip trembled and she threw herself at her coltfriend.

"I can't believe she's gone!" She wailed and buried her nose into Dasher's mane. He held her close, struggling to hold back tears of his own from seeing his marefriend so distraught. He'd only met Dinky a couple of times, but he could see how much Sparkler cared for her younger sister. He guided her over to the sofa and sat her down. She remained rested against him, her sobs barely audible from beneath his mane. He sat her upright and gazed into her now puffy red eyes.

"I'll be ok."

"I know you will Sparky, you're strong like that."

She sat up and glanced around the room. Gold lettering flickering from the light caught her eye. She brushed away a couple of leaflets with her hoof before picking up the object of her attention.

"Heavenly Hooves?"

"Oh, it's a funeral planning service, came through my door a couple of days ago." Dasher realised what would be coming into Sparkler's head. He met her glance and nodded.

"Are they good funeral planners?"

"Some of the best I hear, Heavenly Hooves plan a lot of funerals."

"Will you help me plan a funeral for her?"

"Of course I will sweetie."

They grabbed a piece of paper and started drawing out funeral plans for the lost filly. Sparkler decided she just wanted a small funeral, with some of her and Derpy's close friends. She wanted the coffin to contain some of Dinky's drawings as she loved to draw so much, as well as picture of herself and her mum, so that they would always be with her. Although tears were forming in her eyes, Sparkler pushed on, determined to see Dinky off the right way. Once they had finished, it was beyond sundown, so they'd have to wait till tomorrow to ring Heavenly Hooves.

"We should hit the hay; you look ever so exhausted darling."

Sparkler only weakly nodded before allowing Dasher to support her to the bedroom. Once she got there, she collapsed on the bed, her eyelids almost dropping instantly. The lights went out, pitching the room in darkness. She snuggled up to Dasher, his warmth calming her and fell swiftly asleep.

* * *

><p>"Is this comfy enough?" Rainbow Dash hovered near a white fluffy cloud she had brought in for a bed for Derpy. She settled down in it, poking it with her hooves before nodding. "Great." Positioning it in her room, Rainbow flew back over to her own bed. Derpy hadn't said much since they went to Rainbow's house. Every now and again her eyes would flood up with tears but she looked like she'd cried all the water from her body.<p>

"Do you want to sleep now? You've had a rough day."

Her bottom lip wobbled but she managed to nod. She flew up to the cloud and landed on it, tucking her wings in and cradling her back hooves underneath her. Rainbow nuzzled her. "Goodnight Derpy."

"Night Rainbow."

With a flick of the switch, the room was plummeted into darkness, except for the white light of the moon coming through. Derpy glanced over to Rainbow. She appeared to be asleep already. The moonlight danced of her mane, reflecting the tips of her multicoloured hair in the moonlight. She was glad that she had such a supportive friend there for her. She diverted her gaze back to the moon outside the window. It seemed large tonight, it's craters visible. It had a slight yellowish tinge to it, just like the sun. Sun. The hot flames dancing from it. Derpy frowned. The moon in front of her started to change. Its colour became orange; the outlines started dancing as solar flares emerged from it. The hot flames of the sun spat at the ground below them. Then she heard it.

'_Derpy…'_

That voice was unmistakeable.

'_Mummy…'_

A face was becoming visible in the sun. It was the smiling face of her daughter. But within seconds the sun morphed it. Her smile turned into a scream, her skin blackening as her eyes rolled backwards before being burnt from their sockets.

'_Why did you let me die mummy?'_ The high pitched voice screeched at her. Derpy sat up with a jolt.

"I didn't!" Through hot heavy breaths, Derpy realised that worried crimson eyes were looking at her. The room was silent, the moon outside the window like it had always been. Sweat was dripping down the grey Pegasus's head. In an instant, Rainbow was by her side.

"It's ok Derpy, it was just a dream."

Derpy flung her arms around the cyan Pegasus. Tears and sweat drenching her coat. Catching sight of the moon, she shuddered again and held Rainbow closer. Rainbow caught on what she was looking at.

"It's just the moon Derpy."

"The…the moon doesn't have its own light…"

Rainbow cocked her head, wondering what she was on about. 'Well no…it's lit up by the sun. Wait…the sun. Heat and fire. Oh.'

"Do you want me to cover the window Derpy?"

"Yes please."

She watched as Rainbow flew from the window, returning swiftly with a small cloud. She positioned it near the window and kicked it into place.

"There we go, all gone. Nothing can get you when Auntie Rainbow is here." A small smile emerged on Derpy's lips. "Now settle back into bed, you need to sleep Derps."

"Yes Auntie Rainbow."

Rainbow tucked her in, before looking round to make sure the moon wasn't visible, before flying back to her own bed. She sat awake for a few minutes to make sure that Derpy would fall asleep. A quiet snoring noise confirmed it, and she rested her head on her pillow. She was getting very worried for Derpy. She had no children of her own, but she could imagine how distraught this must be for Derpy, especially considering the way that she went. With a heavy mind, she eventually dropped off to sleep.

* * *

><p>Rainbow woke up to a still quite dimly lit room. She remembered the cloud that she used to cover the window last night. Rubbing her eyes, she stretched her wings and walked across the room. Removing the cloud, she saw that the sun was only just beginning to rise over the hills.<p>

"Rise and shine Der-" Looking to the cloud she realised it was empty. Dread filled her instantly, until she heard a bump from down the hallway. She trotted towards the source of the sound.

"Derpy?"

Turning the corner, she found Derpy frozen in place. Her wings were stiff out at her sides in a defence-like position. Her legs were shaking every now and again, as though one would just give way underneath her.

"Derpy, what's wrong?"

She waved a hoof in front of her face. It seemed to work as her back legs gave way and she sat down, shaking her head.

"I…I'm sorry Dash it's just…" She shakily pointed a hoof towards the kitchen. Rainbow face hoofed when she realised the oven was visible from the corridor.

"It's ok Derpy…nothing is going to happen. My oven is fine."

"But mine wasn't!" She flailed her arms, sobs escaping again before she collapsed on the floor, burying her head in her hooves. "It was my oven wasn't faulty everything would have been fine!"

Rainbow sat down next to her, resting a wing over her. "Derpy, this isn't your fault. You didn't know, nobody did. Accidents happen."

Her sobs became a little bit gentler.

"Now we should get some breakfast, you're looking a little pale. Come this way, do you want to watch some TV?"

"Ok."

Rainbow led her to her large living room and sat her down. She flicked the TV on and tossed the remote to Derpy. "Feel free to choose what you want, I'll get breakfast started."

Derpy sat on the sofa and flicked on the TV. Her first instinct was to turn it to cartoons. She grimaced before turning something less upsetting on. Nothing seemed to comfort her. She couldn't watch the Ponyville news but Ponyville reminded her of the death. The weather wasn't no use since it was going to be 'hot' everywhere today. Even the Wonderbolts TV didn't help as Spitfire was nearly always on it. Eventually she settled for the Canterlot News. It was boring, but better.

Rainbow trotted round the kitchen. She decided she'd make a couple of apple fritters for them both. She set the frozen ones that Applejack had given her on a tray and opened the oven. Even she got a weird shudder when she opened it. She shook it from her mind and put them in. She had to stay strong, for Derpy. She stuck her head round the door.

'Canterlot News? Well whatever suits her fancy…'

A flashing light on her phone alerted her that she had a message. She wandered over to it.

"Unknown number?" She pressed play.

_"Hey Rainbow Dash, it's Sparkler here, I'm calling from Dasher's house. Would it be ok if we could all meet up at Sugar Cube Corner today for lunch? I need to talk about some things with my mum. Thanks."_

Rainbow picked up the phone and dialled the number. It rang on before reaching answer machine. Making a note to try again later, she set it down and checked on the apple fritters. Seeing that they had gone a nice golden brown, she switched the oven off and grabbed an oven glove. Picking up the tray, she set it down whilst she got two plates out. As she swung around, the tip of her wing touched the tray. She jumped, sticking her hoof in her mouth. 'Oh how ironic, to get a burn when Derpy is round.' She quickly ran it under the cold water, hoping Derpy wouldn't notice her slightly charred mark on the end of her feather. Tucking her wings in, she continued serving it up. She took the plates into the front room.

"Here you go Derpy. Careful, it might be a bit hot, it's just come straight out-" Rainbow stopped mid-sentence as she realised the terrible mistake she made with that sentence. Unfortunately Derpy picked it up and tears began to form again. "Derpy I'm sorry I didn't mean to-"

"No it's ok. It's just taking me a little while to get over it."

"Sparkler wants to meet up at Sugar Cube Corner today for lunch by the way. Says she needs to talk to you about something."

"Oh I hope she's doing alright."

"I'm sure she's more worried about you."

They sat eating breakfast in silence with the news of Canterlot blurring in the background.


	5. Things Looking Up?

Rainbow Dash flew slowly through the sky. She had to keep her attention focused; the sky was not cloudless today at all. Rainbow had been dismissed of her weather duties whilst she was looking after Derpy; however the new recruits weren't proving fast enough to clear the sky as early as she could. A watchful eye stayed on Derpy as she flew idly behind her. Every now and again she would drop a few feet, resulting in Rainbow having a panic attack and swooping under her, only to find she would be flying again. Sugar Cube Corner was coming into view, so Rainbow signalled for them to land. She was worried the sight of her house would be too much for Derpy, and had taken the long way around. Unfortunately it meant a longer journey for the slower than usual Derpy.

"We're a bit early; let's go see how Pinkie's doing."

"Ok."

Derpy walked alongside Rainbow, tripping every now and again from lack of picking her feet up properly. Rainbow didn't say anything, just walked wordlessly. She was cautious of what she said in case it offended Derpy somehow. She opened her mouth but shut it again in a couple of seconds.

"Rainbow?"

"Huh?"

"Was you gonna say something?"

"No no, it's fine."

"Ok I- AAAAH!" A pink blur sent the grey mare tumbling backwards. Whilst unhurt, her heart was racing, threatening to beat out of her chest.

"PINKIE PIE!" With a stern shout, the tom colt thrust the party pony off Derpy and helped the startled mare up. Pinkie looked a little confused at how her greeting had been treated so gruffly.

"Pinkie, you know Derpy is going through a hard time!"

"That's why she needs a party!" Pinkie jumped up into the air, earning a face hoof from Rainbow.

"Pinkie, Derpy needs rest, some time to get herself together and-"

"Maybe a party would do me good."

Rainbow turned and raised an eyebrow at her, but Pinkie just sprouted an ever growing smile.

"Great! This is going to be your best Get Better party ever!" With a final bounce, Pinkie swung round and took off in the direction she had come from. Derpy had the slightest of smiles on her face.

"You really think a hyperactive party hosted by a hyperactive pony will help?"

"Well maybe. It could help take my mind off things. And Pinkie never fails to disappoint with her parties."

Rainbow rolled her eyes. "Ok then…anyway, let's get going, we've still got to meet up with Sparkler for lunch first."

They trotted up to Sugar Cube Corner and in through the door. Sparkler and Dasher were already there, sat down at a table near the back. Sparkler instantly noticed their arrival and ran up to her mum, embracing her in a hug.

"Mum, how are you?"

"I'm…fine. Are you ok?"

"I'm great; Dasher has been such an amazing support." Upon mention of his name, he smiled from across the table. Rainbow took this moment to study him. Although being close to Derpy and Dinky, Rainbow had never really spent much time with Sparkler. She had to admit, Dasher was a striking stallion, but a unicorn wasn't really in her 'good' books. Shaking her head, she went and sat down.

Pinkie brought out some cupcakes and muffins that she had baked specially for Derpy. Rainbow didn't talk much; it was mainly Sparkler and Derpy catching up, and then the three of them discussing the funeral. It wasn't until her name was mentioned that she paid attention.

"Rainbow, do you think you could make a sparkling rainbow over Ponyville at the funeral?"

"In my sleep!"

"Great. We've got most of the plans now, wanna see?"

"Sure." Rainbow grabbed the paper that was being pushed her way. It had a picture of a small coffin that was light purple with yellow linings. The gravestone was marble grey, and had pictures of Derpy and Sparkler on it. The grave read 'Here lays Dinky Hooves. A loved daughter, sister and friend of many. Taken away from us in a tragic accident. Rest in peace. 16.03.2004 – 27.07.2012.' Rainbow was on the verge of tears as she kept reading. There was a list of ponies that were invited; there were not many but Rainbow noticed all the element holders and Spike were on it. The funeral director was going to give a speech, followed by anypony else who wanted to. Rainbow was then going to fly over and create a Rainbow as the coffin was lowered.

"It's beautiful…"

"I'm glad you like it. I want the best for my little sister."

"And I know she will love it."

They sat in silence for a few moments before the pink party pony burst through the doors again.

"You guys gotta get outta here! I want this party to be surprise! Well it won't be a surprise surprise because you already know it's happening, but I want what's actually in the party to be a surprise won't that be fun?"

The four ponies blinked at her before nodding their heads slowly; afraid she might burst at any moment.

"A party?"

"Yeah, Pinkie wants to throw a Get Better party for Derpy."

Sparkler turned to Dasher. "I guess it will be fun…we'll be there!"

"Perfect!" Pinkie screamed at an alarmingly high pitch. "Now shoo!" The four ponies allowed themselves to be pushed from the shop and flinched as the door slammed behind them and the curtains were drawn. It took them a few minutes to gather their senses that they were getting wet. They scuffled back under the canopy of Sugar Cube Corner. Rainbow looked up and grimaced.

"It's 1 o clock in the afternoon! Why haven't they finished clearing the sky yet?"

As if on cue, a young Pegasus came hurtling towards the ground, pulling up several moments before coming face first with the mud. He wore a white vest, instantly recognising him as one of the new weather recruits. Rainbow stomped forward, not caring about getting wet.

"What in the hay is going on? Why aren't these clouds cleared?"

He pulled himself up and stammered. He was cream coloured with a light brown fluffy mane and tail. His cutie mark was a swirl of chocolate and cream. "I…I'm sorry, it's just t…taking a while and then the clouds started r…raining."

"Ugh, well then I suggest you pick up the pace Chocco Swirl!"

With a salute, he flew back up into the sky, bucking the nearest cloud. However it only caused it to rain harder.

"Oh for the love of…" Seeing that Derpy was occupied chatting to Sparkler and Dasher, she figured she had some time. She flew up, noticing some other recruits that were struggling with the rain clouds. Several younger ones were bucking like crazy. "Ugh, don't they know you can't buck clouds away once they've started raining?" Flying up higher, she started to fly around in circles till she had sufficient speed up. She then proceeded to fly through the rain clouds at an unmatchable speed, making them disappear in an instant. She zoomed from cloud to cloud, leaving a rainbow trail in her wake that sparkled with the raindrops from the clouds. Within minutes, all the remaining clouds had been destroyed and the sun was shining through. The younger recruits cheered.

"I do NOT expect this performance tomorrow! If you can't clear them in time, I suggest you all get up earlier!" With a flick of her tail she went back down to the ground.

"Sorry about that guys."  
>"No problem. Me and Dasher are going to go home and ring Heavenly Hooves. Shall we meet you back here at six for the party?"<p>

"Sounds like a plan!"

"Great, see you later guys." Sparkler gave her mum one last hug and walked off with Dasher.

* * *

><p>"So…what you want to do now?"<p>

"If you don't mind, could we just quickly check up on Applejack? She wasn't expecting rain today; I hope it hasn't messed up anything on the farm."

"Of course."

They both sprung into the freshly moist air and took off towards the farm. Seeing Sparkler must have give Derpy an energy boost, as she was now keeping up with speed and staying in a consistent rhythm. Before long, the big red barn of Sweet Apple Acres came into view. They scanned the fields, looking for the work pony. Flying lower, they soon spotted her near the hoses. Rainbow went to say hi but instead ended up laughing. The farm pony was covered in mud from head to toe. Even Derpy let a little snigger slide.

"Very funny RD…ah thought it weren't suppos'd to rain today?"

"It wasn't, but the new recruits are so slow. But for this look, I'd say it's worth it."

Applejack grimaced at Rainbow and started washing the mud off herself.

"What happened anyway?"

"Big Mac ain't feelin' too good, so ah'm fillin' in fer 'im. This 'ere rain made the ground all slippery like, and ah lost ma grip when ah was pullin' the cart."

"Haha, how I would have paid to see that!"

In a swift motion, AJ pointed the hose at Rainbow, throwing her off balance and soaking her in the process. "Now that's what ah would pay to see!"

Rainbow went to fight back, but resisted when she saw Derpy stood there. "Oh right, sorry to keep you waiting Derps."

"How yer doin' Derpy?"

"Ok I guess."

She put a hoof on her shoulder. "Yer know she always be with yer, in 'ere." She pointed a hoof at her heart gently, resulting in a smile from her.

"Thanks AJ."

"Catch you later AJ." She turned to fly off but suddenly remembered something. "Oh yeah, Pinkie is throwing a party later today so be on the look out for her."

"Alrigh'."

* * *

><p>Rainbow and Derpy trotted to the local park. Not many ponies were out since the unexpected downpour, so it was quite quiet. The only exception was Bon Bon and Lyra sat on a bench, looking rather wet. They walked over to them.<p>

"Hey guys, you're looking a bit…wet."

Bon Bon frowned with a slight smirk. "Well with the weather captain out and all…"

"Yeah, I hear she's taking care of a friend." Rainbow grasped Derpy round the shoulder.

"How are you doing Derpy? It must be terrible having to go through that." The light green unicorn got up from her unusual sitting position and trotted over to her. Derpy was vaguely familiar with the couple in Ponyville.

"I'm getting better, thanks to Rainbow Dash."

"That's great. I'm sure you'll be back to your old self in no time."

Derpy grinned. "Hey Rainbow, I'm just gonna go over to the fountain."

"Oh sure, I'll catch up with you in a minute." With a ruffle of her wings the grey mare walked away.

"Is she really getting better?"

"It looks like it. She hasn't really been showing much emotion today, but you can hardly blame her."

"Poor darling, it must be tearing her apart." Bon Bon threw a sorrowed look in her direction.

"Oh! That reminds me!" Rainbow unfolded her wing, resulting in a piece of paper dropping out. She picked it up and handed it to Lyra. "Sparkler is planning a funeral for Dinky. You're both welcome to attend, but she wanted to know if you could play this tune on the lyre at the funeral."

Lyra beamed; she'd never pass up a chance to show off her musical skills. "I'd be honoured to." She skimmed over the sheet. "And you're in luck; I know this tune rather well already."

"Great. I don't know exactly when it is yet, but I'll fill you in when I get the details."

"Ok." Just as Rainbow was about to trot away, Bon Bon nudged Lyra and they whispered. She cocked her head at them.

"Um, before you go, do you think you could do us a favour?" A small blush had appeared on Bon Bon's face.

"Uh, what do you need?"

"Can you put a cloud above us and make it rain? Not heavy rain, more of a drizzle just slightly heavier."

"Uh…I guess…" Rainbow flew up and soon found a loose rain cloud. She brought it down, positioned it over them and kicked it ever so gently. Light raindrops began to fall down on the two ponies. Lyra's eyelids closed halfway and an almost hungry smile appeared on her face. Getting a hint, Rainbow turned tail and trotted away. Mushy stuff like that was definitely not her thing. But curiosity getting the better of her, she looked back; only to wish she hadn't. Lyra and Bon Bon had their tongues entwined as the rain dampened their coats against each other. Rainbow just stuck her tongue out; that might have been Rarity's thing but not hers. She joined Derpy, who was staring down into the water. Her reflection would get distorted every now and again by a drop from the over hanging tree.

"You ok Derpy."

"Yeah…"

She continued staring down. Even though her eyes were cross eyed, it still looked as though the focus of them both were staring down into the water. The sun's reflection in the water caught her eye. The sound of fillies and colts laughing in the background drifted into her ears. The water began to change. An image began forming. Derpy was looking down at her own daughter. Eyes shut, a wide smile bearing her face. She opened her eyes and began to reach out for something. Her hoof touched the reflection of the sun. It turned black, her face turned to a look of pain. With a flash, it caught fire, searing down her leg and turning her own body to flames. She began to scream out; her daughter's screams rang in her ears. Then there was a new face. A bluey purple face of a unicorn stallion with a blonde mane. It had a single purple streak running down it. It turned to her and spoke with a low voice. 'You let my daughter die…'

"No I didn't!" Derpy screamed out, lashing at the water. Her eyes were shut and she was flailing her hooves everywhere, soaking a surprised Rainbow Dash.

"Derpy! Derpy what's wrong?" Grabbing her under her chest, she pulled her backwards away from the water. Opening her eyes, tears began to form.

"She's…everywhere I go…" Derpy spoke quietly.

"Maybe we need to get you home and rest."

Derpy only nodded and flew upwards. Her wings were trembling, and every time she tried to get airborne, she would only fall back down again. Rolling her eyes, Rainbow flew underneath her. Making sure her wing movement wasn't disturbed; she flew upwards, carrying Derpy with great balance to make sure she didn't slip off. Once inside her cloud home, she laid Derpy to rest on the cloud bed.

"You rest up now Derpy." Rainbow went to fly away but found her movement restricted. Turning, she saw Derpy had hold of her wings with a saddening look on her face.

"Will you sleep with me?" The childish voice almost killed Rainbow inside and she settled back down. Derpy instantly snuggled right up to her. Rainbow could feel her hot breaths blowing against her chest. Her eyes were shut tight and she had fallen asleep almost instantly. Rainbow smiled and kissed her gently on the cheek before slipping out of the bed and putting a pillow in her place. She then tiptoed out the room and down into the living room. She collapsed on the cloud sofa; she didn't really get much rest during the day with Derpy acting weird. She really wanted to go check on the party, but would it be safe to leave Derpy on her own? Leaving a note on Derpy's door, she flew down to Ponyville.

* * *

><p>"Pinkie?" Rainbow opened the door of Sugar Cube Corner carefully. It was dim inside from where the curtains were drawn. She noticed a light coming from the kitchen. She made her way over.<p>

"Pinkie? Oh there you are." The pink pony had a chef's hat on and was rushing about the kitchen making snacks.

"Oh Rainbow Dash! I'm glad you're here, I could sure use your help."

"What do you need?"

"Can you deliver all these invitations to the ponies listed?"

Rainbow took the stack of envelopes Pinkie was holding. "Sure thing Pinkie! I can get them delivered in ten seconds flat!"

"Yippee! Now off you go, leave the master chef to her work."

Rainbow rolled her eyes before stepping back outside. She instantly began delivering letters to pony's houses, launching them through letterboxes.

'Heheh, I'm so good at this, I should be a mail mare!' She stopped mid-flight. It reminded her of a certain mail mare at home. 'Derpy…' She pushed herself as fast as she could to get the rest of the invitations delivered before flying back up to her house. A sound of thunder coming from near her house told her Derpy wasn't asleep anymore.


	6. Let's Party!

"No! Leave me alone!"

Derpy bucked the storm cloud as hard as she could, sending lightning bolts into the nearby window. Her eyes were clenched shut, wings flapping hard and her legs kicking constantly against the cloud.

"Derpy? What are you doing?"

Derpy froze as she heard the familiar voice. She opened her eyes and saw an annoyed Rainbow Dash looking back at her. She then snapped back to reality.

"Oh…uh….my bad?" She grinned sheepishly and rubbed the back of her neck. Rainbow stuck her head in the window. Her bedroom had black marks everywhere from the lightning bolts and Derpy's cloud bed was completely destroyed. Luckily, most important things hadn't been hit. Pushing the storm cloud away, she flew back inside.

"What was wrong Derpy?"

"I saw Dinky…and Bubbles…and they were yelling at me, that I let her die." Tears threatened to form at the corners of her eyes.

Rainbow hadn't heard much about Bubbles. All she knew was that he was once Derpy's coltfriend. Her curiosity drove her to know more.

"You…never say much about Bubbles."

"It was a long time ago."

"What happened?"

Derpy sighed. "When I was younger I met this stallion called Bubbles. Unlike the other colts and fillies, he didn't make fun of my derped eyes. He even thought they were cute." A small blush appeared on her cheeks. "We grew up together and I found myself falling for him. Then we had Sparkler and I was overjoyed, holding my very own first daughter in my hooves. I was quite young when I had her, but I didn't care. Then some years later, Dinky came along. We were so happy at our building family. A remember little Sparkler obsessing over Dinky like she was one of her own. But then a couple of months later, Bubbles fell ill. He got worse and worse until he had to stay in the hospital. The nurses couldn't figure out what was wrong with him. He kept on going downhill so rapidly. Poor Sparkler was so upset that she couldn't make sense of any of it. A couple of weeks later he just…went. I was so upset. Since then I had to raise Dinky on my own. Sparkler helped, but it was hard getting along without him. I guess time has healed me…but I still feel like I let him down with Dinky…"

Rainbow draped a wing over her shoulder. "Derpy, you didn't let any pony down with Dinky. What happened was a pure accident. You raised Dinky into a beautiful young filly; you were the best mum to her that I have ever seen."

Derpy sniffed. "Thanks Dash."

"No problem. Now wanna go watch some TV before the party?"

"Sure."

They went downstairs and Rainbow dived onto the sofa, grabbing the remote. Derpy sat down more gracefully.

"What do wanna watch?"

"I don't mind, you choose."

Rainbow grinned and immediately flicked to the Wonderbolts channel. They were featuring interviews of some of the top Wonderbolts. A yellow pony with a fiery orange pony came onto the screen. Rainbow lent forward and grabbed the edge of the sofa.

"So Spitfire! What is it like flying up there with your team?" An interviewer pony held a microphone to her.

"It's an amazing feeling, it truly is, when I'm flying with my fellow Wonderbolts it feels as if we are all one force and all the tricks come naturally."

"A great answer! And what about your trail, how does it feel using your fiery trail to make those patterns across the sky?"

"Well it's quite hard to see them when I'm actually in the air," she shared a laugh with the interviewer. "But it looks great in the pictures. I just believe that fire is my friend and that bond helps me make an amazing trail."

Derpy's ears were flat back and her face had formed into a scowl. She jumped as the screen immediately went black.

"Derpy are you ok?"

Shaking her head she was met with crimson eyes staring at her.

"Fire is my friend? Friend?"

"Derpy calm down, it's a different situation with Spitfire."

"But how could she say that? Oh yeah, because she didn't lose her daughter to it!"

"Derpy please just calm down."

Derpy let her shoulders drop and her eyes trailed downwards. "I guess I am getting a bit hot headed." She flinched at her own words.

Rainbow sighed. Derpy's sensitiveness was pushing her patience. She wasn't a naturally patient pony. She knew this was hard on her but she couldn't fear fire for the rest of her life could she? She was a muffin baker for crying out loud!

"Let's go down to Sugar Cube Corner. I know it's a bit early but it will give you some time to relax before the party."

"Good idea."

Making sure there were no local storm clouds Derpy could disrupt, they set off and down to Sugar Cube Corner. Surprisingly, Sparkler and Dasher were already there.

"Oh hey guys, we weren't expecting you this early."

"Me neither, but Derpy needed some fresh air."

Derpy sat down next to Sparkler and rested her head on her shoulder.

"Oh and I spoke to Lyra about playing at the funeral, she said she'd be glad to."

"Perfect! We've got it booked for two days from now, so Tuesday."

They all sat down and spoke about the funeral plans. Ponies were generally beginning to drift into Sugar Cube Corner, sympathising for Derpy as they passed her. A pink party pony stuck her head out the door.

"Oh goody guys, you're here! Come on in, we're ready to start!"

The four ponies edged on in through the door. The room was dark, and they were momentarily blinded as the lights flashed on.

"Happy Get Better party Derpy!" All of the ponies chanted. Derpy smiled, seeing that all her friends had cared to show up. There was a big banner across the top of the room reading "Get Better Derpy!" Various tables lined the room loaded with Sugar Cube Corner goods. The middle of the room was cleared for the dance floor with a disco ball hanging above it. There were also some tables set up with chairs.

"Wow…thanks Pinkie! Every pony!"

"No problem Derpy, I-" Pinkie stopped as a song started playing. "This is my jam! Gotta dance!" In an instant she was off. Derpy noticed Carrot Top, a friend of hers motioning her over.

"Hey Rainbow, I'm gonna go see Carrot Top."

"Sure thing, go right ahead." Rainbow went and joined her friends.

"Hey Carrot Top! I thought you weren't getting back till tomorrow!"

"Well I was but I finished the business early so I managed to get the express train back last night. Oh Derpy I can't believe what happened while I was gone!" Carrot Top flung her arms round her and pulled her tight. "You poor thing, it must be heart breaking."

"It really is…but thankfully I have all these great friends like you to help me through it."

"Well you know I'm always here for you Derpy."

"Thanks. Wanna dance?"

"I'd love to."

"They went over to the dance floor and joined the crowd. Rainbow was spinning in the air whilst Pinkie was dancing hyperactively underneath. Fluttershy and Rarity were stood near the edge, swaying gently to the music. Applejack had her snout buried in the buffet table whilst Twilight was running round checking everything was ok. Picking up the beat of the song, Derpy gradually got lost in the song and was stomping her hooves about. Carrot Top admitted it wasn't the best dancing she'd seen, but as long as she was happy, that's all that mattered. After a while of dancing she went over to the buffet table. She was about to get something when a poofy mane popped up in front of her.

"Hey Derpy! Look, I cooked these special muffins for you!" Sure enough there was a large tray of muffins with a gentle steam coming off them. Derpy felt her mouth starting to drool. "But don't eat too much; otherwise you won't have room for the surprise at the end!"

"What is it?"

"I can't tell you silly, otherwise it won't be a surprise."

Derpy just blinked before getting back to the food. A few other ponies had joined her and they began chatting away.

* * *

><p>Rainbow on the other hand was now settled down at a table with Sparkler.<p>

"How is she Dash?"

"It may not look like it now, but not that good. Every time something happens that related to fire or hotness, she gets uneasy. She yelled at the TV earlier because the Wonderbolts were interviewing Spitfire. She froze up the other morning just because she saw the oven. And I've got charred marks in my bedroom from where she was bucking a storm cloud for some unknown reason. She freaked out at the park earlier as well. I think she keeps seeing things."

"Poor thing…she's taking this so hard."

"She's becoming quite the handful. And the weather duties are faltering too without me."

"Hmm…I'll tell you what, Carrot Top is back in town, why not ask her if she can cater for Derpy?"

"Well I don't wanna burden her…"

"I'm sure she'll be fine, Derpy's been round Carrot Top's loads of times."

"Alright I'll ask, as much as I want to be there for Derpy, these new weather recruits are awful."

As if on cue, Carrot Top came over.

"Hey guys."

"Hey Carrot Top, perfect timing, I have a favour to ask. Do you think you could house Derpy for a while? It's just the weather duties are faltering a bit because I can't work with her."

"Of course! I'd be pleasured to; I don't like rain as much as the next pony. Of course I'll have to stock up on food first though…" They shared a laugh before Rainbow flew across the dance floor. She found Derpy with her snout buried in a muffin.

"Hey Derpy."

"Mmf, hmph mash!"

"Uh…"

Derpy swallowed her mouth full of muffin. "Hehe, sorry, I said hey there Dash."

"Of course. Anyway, how do you feel about staying round Carrot Top's? It's just; I really need to get back to my weather duty. But I'll still come and visit you when I have time."

"It's fine Dash, I know you're busy and I felt kind of bad dragging you down."

"Aw don't be, I'm always there for a friend." Rainbow wrapped a hoof around her neck and ruffled her mane. At the moment the music stopped and Pinkie came out the kitchen wheeling a cart.

"Every pony gather round!"

All the talking died down and ponies came around the cart. Derpy was brought to the front.

"For the special pony today!" Pinkie cried, before ripping the cover off. Underneath was a big cake that was shaped like a muffin. It had the letters 'Get Well Soon Derpy' in icing. But the thing that brought Derpy's attention up most was the candles. Ten candles, their flames flickering as the wax melted slowly down the stick. The cheers of the ponies generally got quieter and the last thing Derpy saw was the floor of Sugar Cube corner before everything went black.


	7. Family Reunion

…

"Uh…my head…"

Derpy groaned as she rubbed her head with her hoof. She opened her eyes and sat up groggily.

"What happened…"

The last thing she remembered was being in Sugar Cube Corner. The cake, the candles…did she pass out? She opened her eyes fully and squinted. It was dark. She could just about make out the pink walls. She was still in Sugar Cube Corner.

"Hello?"

The only thing she got back was an eerie echo. Groaning, she got to her feet, stumbling for a few seconds. There was something different about this room. It was empty. The only thing in the room was a single cart, with a sheet covering it.

"Is this some sort of surprise?"

Still nothing but an eerie echo. Derpy gulped. Her heart beat began picking up. She walked slowly over to the cart and reached a trembling hoof out. It froze in the air, a few inches away from the cart. 'It's just a cake Derpy, just pull it!' she screamed at herself. Grabbing the sheet, she tossed it aside before bolting away from it. She looked back at it.

"Just a cake huh?"

She wandered back over to it. The candles were gone. Derpy realised the light was coming from a single bulb above her head. It dangled loosely, giving off a small amount of light that occasionally flickered. A reflection caught her eye. In the cake was a knife. It was a large butcher's knife, and it had cut right through the picture of her. Jam seeped out the opening, appearing like blood on the picture. Derpy gulped. Drawing her attention away from that, she noticed the edges of the cake were charred black. Burnt. Derpy backed away from it.

"No no no…it wasn't burnt…"

She squealed as her flank hit the wall behind her. Her breathing became heavier as she looked around the room frantically.

"Pinkie? Dash? Any pony?"

"Derpy…"

She swung round, her wings sticking out in defence. The voice was eerie, almost like the echo of her own.

"W…who said that?"

"Don't you recognise me Ditsy?"

Ditsy…she could only remember one pony who called her that.

"No…it can't be…you're…you're dead…"

From the shadows of the corner, a stallion with a bluey purple coat emerged. His blonde mane was ragged and his eyes were blood shot. He had a small grin on his face. When Derpy noticed him her mouth dropped open. She backed away from him.

"B…bubbles? No…"

"Aren't you happy to see me baby?"

"T…this isn't possible!"

"You know what else isn't possible? My baby girl growing in a beautiful young adult!" He stomped his hoof on the floor. "Why? Oh yeah…because her irresponsible mother killed her!"

Tears were forming in Derpy's eyes. "No! I didn't kill her! I didn't mean to!" She kept stepping backwards, keeping her distance from him. This wasn't her colt friend she knew.

"Of course not…funny how your family members just keep disappearing…is Sparkler next? Are you going to kill my beautiful girl too? Maybe using water this time!"

"No! I would never try to kill any pony!" Her back hit the wall and she realised she was cornered. Bubbles kept on advancing, his head held low, teeth baring. Sweat began to drip down her coat and her legs trembled, threatening to give way underneath her.

"I bet Dasher knows it too…that's why he hasn't invited you round huh? Because some ponies actually care about their family members!"

"I would never try to kill any pony, let alone my Sparkler!"

"YOUR Sparkler?"

"I...I mean…"

Bubbles was right in front of her now. His fur was ragged and his pupils dilated. His ear twitched.

"I suppose she was YOUR Dinky too huh?" His voice was hushed, almost like a whisper. "Well not anymore."

Derpy could hear hoof steps around the room. She tried straining her head around Bubbles.

"Do you want to see YOUR Dinky?"

"N…no…she's g…gone."

"Oh don't be silly Ditsy, she's right here." Bubbles moved out of the way. Derpy screeched at the sight before her. Trotting around the room was a unicorn skeleton. It had burnt flesh clinging to it's bones and a frazzled mane running down it's neck. It's eye sockets were empty, and it's mouth was stuck in a twisted smile.

"Dinky darling, do you want to see your murderer?"

Derpy couldn't speak. She couldn't understand what was happening.

"You don't look very happy to see your family again. It isn't often we get to do this."

"T…this?"

"Yes…maybe you'd like to join us? His face was mere centimetres from her own. "We could be a family again." He closed the distance and his lips met with hers. Derpy's eyes grew and she tried pulling away. Her efforts were rendered useless when a hoof grabbed the back of her head and pulled her into him. After a few forceful attempts, his tongue was exploring her mouth. Tears flowed down her cheeks and her body shook with fear. She could still hear the clopping of tiny hooves around the room. He broke away from her after a few minutes.

"I thought you used to enjoy my kisses…" He hissed at her.

She just blinked at him, gasping for breath. A frown formed upon his face.

"Maybe you'd like to join us another way…" His horn began to glow a teal colour. Derpy felt herself being lifted from the floor as the unicorn's magic surrounded her. In an instant, she felt herself get flung at the wall. She put her wings out in a failed attempt to stop herself.

"W…what are you doing?"

"Making you feel the pain you put my daughter through!"

"I didn't mean to!"

Bubbles reared up and came down on Derpy's still outstretched wing. The power of his hoof crushed the bone. Derpy let out an ear piercing scream. She managed to stumble up and put a bit of distance between them. The pain from her wing rang through her ears.

"Please stop!"

He turned and glared at her. "Just why should I? Don't you think you deserve this for killing my daughter?"

Derpy couldn't think of anything to say. 'Dinky' just kept on trotting round the room, that twisted smile never leaving. A glint distracted her attention back to Bubbles. His magic had picked up the knife that was stuck in the cake and was now swirling it around. Derpy backed up into the wall, hitting her broken wing. She winced and recoiled over in pain. She felt herself get lifted by magic and brought face to face with Bubbles.

"You think that's painful? That's nothing compared to what Dinky suffered." He spat in her face. Still wrapped in his magic, he placed her against the wall. The knife floated alongside with him.

"I wouldn't admit it before, but I was always a tiny bit jealous of your wings. How you could just take to the air any time you wanted. If you didn't manage to break something first…"

"Bubbles…this isn't you…you're not the bubbly young colt I fell in love with. You're a fake." Derpy hissed.

Bubbles charged towards, aiming the knife at her throat and only stopping at the last second. "Death changes a pony darling."

With that, he took the knife and swirled it round her wing. Derpy didn't know what to do. The pain in her wing was excrutiating and his magical grip was strong. She didn't have much more time to think when pain entered her other wing. Turning her head she saw the knife beginning to drive into the base of her wing. She started screaming as he thrust the knife into her.

"Yes…scream…like the screams of your daughter that you never heard!"

He brought the knife back, only to thrust it through her wing again with almighty force. It tore right through the bone, leaving the wing hanging on by only a tiny bit of flesh. Blood started to run out, staining her once greyish blue wing to a deep red colour. Bubbles grabbed the wing in his teeth and yanked backwards, ripping the wing clean off, along with a strip of skin running across her stomach. She hollered out again, tears soaking down her cheek. She flailed aimlessly with her hooves, only resulting in the magic becoming stronger.

"Just hold still, it will make it so much easier." He brought the knife round to the front with his magic and aimed it at her chest before stopping.

"Hmm…" He released his magical grip, resulting in Derpy dropping to the floor with a thud. She laid next to her wing, blood still seeping out from the open wound. She was beginning to feel dizzy from the blood loss. Looking up she saw Bubbles hovering the knife near Dinky. The knife lost it's magical force and dropped into the hooves of Dinky. The creature then trotted over to Derpy.

"Hey mummy." It's mouth moved slowly, but never lost that twisted smile. The eye less holes seemed to stare into her.

"D…Dinky…" Her voice was weak.

"Don't go on me yet mummy." Her voice turned dark and sinister. "Not until I'm done with you."

What was left of her horn grew an amazingly bright purple and she lifted Derpy up. She then rested her on the table on her back. Derpy was gasping for air, the blood loss hitting her hard. Dinky lifted herself into the air with her magic before brining the knife down to Derpy's eye. In a flash, the knife slammed down through her eye, piercing the eyeball and sending blood everywhere. The unicorn skeleton only grinned in delight at Derpy's screams. She was quick to do the same to the other eye, drenching her face in blood. Derpy was flailing her hooves, making sounds that were trying to be formed into words.

"Don't panic mummy. You can be with us soon. Won't that be nice?" Dinky then started licking the blood from her coat. Bubbles wandered over.

"See Derpy? You didn't like that pain much did you. Just think what Dinky could have grown into. A beautiful talented mare. And instead you turned her into a monster." He spat at her."Just remember, you deserved all of this Derpy…Derpy…Derpy…"

* * *

><p>"Derpy…Derpy?"<p>

That voice sounded so distant.

"Derpy…please wake up…"

Wake up?

"Derpy…come on…"

Derpy lifted a hoof to her head. Was she alive? She twitched her wing. Then the other one. They were both attached and working.

"I think she's coming to!"

Derpy gently opened her eyes. She found herself looking a pale green ceiling. She shut them again after the bright light blinded her.

"Derpy? Can you hear me?"

Derpy opened her eyes again. Twisting her head slowly she saw Rainbow Dash stood next to her. Next to her was Carrot Top. They were both staring at her.

"I..wha…" She slowly pushed herself upwards. When she sat upright she realised she was in Carrot Top's bedroom. Putting her hoof to her head she felt that she was sweating a lot, and judging by the soggyness of the bed sheets, she'd been sweating a while.

"Oh Derpy you're awake! Am I ever so glad!"

Carrot Top rushed over to her and embraced her in a hug. Derpy just sat there limply.

"Wha…what happened?"

"What do you remember Derpy?"

"Bubbles and Dinky killed me."

Carrot and Rainbow gasped at her monotone statement. "That would explain the sweating…" Rainbow muttered.

"Derpy sweetie, you've been out cold for the past three hours."

"Out…cold?"

"Yes. You fainted when Pinkie showed you the surprise cake she made for you. You wouldn't wake up so we ended the party early and me and Rainbow brought you back to my house. We got worried about you because you kept murmuring and breaking out in a sweat."

"So…I didn't die…that was just a nightmare?"

"You're very much alive Derpy."

Her lip wobbled. "Oh it was terrible! Bubbles was there, and he was being horrible to me saying I killed Dinky, and I'm going to kill Sparkler, and Dinky was a skeleton, and then they both killed me!"

Derpy fell forward, sobbing into the quilts. Rainbow rolled her eyes; it wasn't the first time Derpy had got upset over a nightmare. Carrot Top nudged her.

"It's ok, go, I'll handle her from here." She whispered.

"Are you sure?"

"Positive, you need the rest."

"Thanks. I'll see you later."

Rainbow trotted out the door and closed it quietly. Carrot put a hoof around Derpy.

"Listen hun, it was just a dream. Nobody is accusing you of killing Sparkler and nobody is coming to kill you."

"But…Bubbles said Dasher doesn't invite me round because I might kill Sparkler."

"Hun, Dasher doesn't invite you round because…" Carrot stopped and cringed.

"Because what?"

"Well being teenagers, Sparkler and Dasher like to have a little...well maybe a lot of alone time…in the bedroom."

"Oh…yeah." Despite the situation, Derpy couldn't help but giggle.

"Just forget this bad dream ever happened. Do you want to come watch some TV to take your mind off things?"

"If it's alright, not really…could we play some board games instead?"

"Of course."

Derpy slid out of bed and followed Carrot down to the living room.

"Take a seat, I'm just going to check my phone."

Derpy wandered in and started going through the cupboards. Having come round here a lot of times when she was younger, she knew where everything was.

Carrot Top was surprised to find a message on her phone. She clicked play.

'_Hey Carrot Top, Sparkler here, I just wanted to make sure Derpy's ok. Me and Dasher would have stayed longer but the funeral service were ringing back tonight and we couldn't miss the call. Please take care of her for me, thank you so much.'_

Carrot Top saved the message and joined Derpy back in the living room. To her dismay, she'd managed to drag Scrabble out. Derpy wasn't exactly the best at Scrabble. Derpy just looked up at Carrot Top and smiled, already managing to have a letter in her forelock. Laughing, Carrot Top joined her on the floor.


	8. May You Rest In Peace

Derpy looked at her reflection in the mirror. A simple black dress hung over her with her wings protruding from it. She wore a black hat with a small veil hanging from it. A sad smile dressed itself across her face.

"Time to see you off properly Dinky…" She muttered to nopony in particular. After checking her look once more, she wandered into the living room of Carrot Top's home. The orange pony was dressed in the same outfit, flicking through various TV channels to buy time before the funeral. She looked up when she heard hooves across the floor.

"Does it fit alright Derpy?"

"It fits perfectly, thank you Carrot Top."

"Thank Rarity, that darling made them all for the ponies attending."

Derpy smiled. "Do you mind if we get going? This waiting around is kind of building my tension."

Carrot Top turned off the TV. "Of course sweetie. Are you all ready?"

"Yes."

"Great." She stood up gingerly and walked over to Derpy. She nuzzled her cheek. "I'm proud of you for staying strong."

They walked out the door and began on their way to the town centre. The atmosphere seemed different; there wasn't the usual noise of the chatty ponies doing their morning routines, and a dense fog lingered in the air. The two ponies walked silently till they arrived. It was still quite early in the morning, and there were only a few ponies around setting up the funeral.

"Derpy!" Sparkler ran forward to her mum and embraced her in a hug.

"Hey honey, are you well?"

"I'm getting better. Do you want to see the preparations so far?"

"I'd love to."

Sparkler gently grasped her hoof and took her round. Near the centre of the clearing, there was an arc that had vines and flowers wrapped around it. Underneath it was a single podium. There was an extremely smart pony stood there, he had a silver coat with a dark grey mane and he was wearing a black robe and reading a book.

"Derpy, this is Fate. He is the owner of Heavenly Hooves and will be doing the reading." Sparkler nudged her forward.

"A pleasure to meet you Miss Derpy Hooves." He held out his hoof which Derpy gracefully shook. "I would just like to say that I am terribly sorry for your loss, and as my duty I will strive to give the young filly a perfect funeral."

Derpy was already on the verge of tears. "Th…thank you Mr Fate, I appreciate it."

Grasping her hoof again, Sparkler continued her small tour. Mats had been laid out either side of the podium for the ponies to stand on. There was a large rectangular block in front of the podium for the coffin to be placed on when it arrived. Flowers had been laid around the site. Near the front. Derpy found Lyra sitting in front of her lyre with a sheet of music notes next to her. Bon Bon was sat behind her, waiting patiently.

"Hey Lyra, I'm so glad you could do this for me."

"Anything for this Derpy, would you like to hear a part of the music?"

"I'd love to."

The four ponies silenced themselves. Lyra began running her hooves along the lyre. Derpy was extremely impressed. The music was incredibly smooth and almost calming, and it seemed to ring out across the entire town. After she'd finished playing, Derpy and Sparkler clapped their hooves.

"That was beautiful Lyra."

"Only the best for the little filly."

Derpy smiled, her bottom lip wobbling slightly. She and Sparkler walked over and sat on the mat. They were joined shortly by Carrot Top who had been talking to Bon Bon.

"Everything is ready rather early isn't it Sparkler."

"I guess…but I just wanted to make sure everything was absolutely perfect…"

Putting a hoof over her shoulder, Derpy pulled Sparkler closer. "I know you do honey. And Dinky will love everything you've done for her."

Sparkler sniffed. "Thanks mum."

* * *

><p>Ponies gradually began to file into the area. The elements came first, and Rarity instantly began running around making sure all of her outfits were perfect. Only a small selection of ponies whom Derpy's family knew were here; Colgate, Berry Punch, The Crusaders, Dinky's friends and some other ponies. Derpy got up and was stood near the front alongside Carrot Top, Sparkler and Rainbow Dash. That's when Derpy noticed something. She nudged her daughter.<p>

"Where is Dasher?"

"Oh, he's accompanying the ponies that are bringing Dinky. I would have done it but I…just don't think I could of."

"I understand darling." She nuzzled her. "You've got an amazing coltfriend honey."

Sparkler blushed. "I certainly do…"

As if on cue, ponies could be made out coming from the mist. Lyra began brushing her hooves across her lyre, sending her beautiful melody across the town. Fate made his way up to the podium. Two formal looking stallions walked a small coffin on the cart they were pulling. Alongside them was Dasher, trying to put on his bravest face possible. They brought it over to the block and lifted it onto it using their unicorn magic. In silence, they took the cart away. Dasher trotted over and stood next to Sparkler. Fate coughed, settling down the hushed whisper of the crowd.

"Mares, gentlecolts. We gather here today to see off a beautiful young filly, Miss Dinky Hooves. She was taken from this world by a cruel and tragic accident so early on in life. I'm sure many of you will wish to give your blessings to this little angel." He nodded to Derpy and stepped from the podium. She walked up, gazing upon the small crowd in front of her. Many of them were already holding tissues, some not even being able to look at the coffin.

"I…I just want to say thank you to all of you for coming…it means a lot to me. I still find it hard to believe my little Dinky is gone…it's so hard losing a family member like that…" Her voice cracked as she was on the verge of tears. The audience blurred beneath her. Sparkler quickly trotted up, followed by Dasher. Derpy shook her head, indicating that she couldn't go on. Sparkler bowed her head.

"It hasn't felt the same in my life recently. I know there have been so many times when Dinky has just gotten so on my nerves. Like when she used up all my mane products…or the time she coloured all over my work sheets…but I would rather she do any of that than leave us here like this. She was the most perfect little sister that I could ever ask for, and I feel bad that I will never get to tell her how much she truly meant to me," She averted her gaze to the coffin. "One day we will meet again Dinky, and until then, you'll forever be in our hearts." She wiped away the few tears that had formed and helped escort a distraught Derpy back down with Dasher.

One by one, ponies went up to give speeches for Dinky. Each one had so much emotion put into it, and nopony in the area could maintain dry eyes. Nearer the end, Applebloom, Scootaloo, Sweetie Belle, and a few other foals from the school went up to the front. Applebloom started speaking first.

"Ah can't really believe that ah'm standin' here right now…ah never thought that somethin' terrible like this would happen to one of ma friends."

"It really scares me what you had to go through, and it pains me knowing how much hurt you had to go through. I just wish somehow you could have escaped it all…" Scootaloo moved closer to Applebloom.

"You shouldn't have been taken like this Dinky. You were so fun and such a great friend. It's just so unfair…" The final crusader joined her two friends as tears started leaking from them. A few other friends of Dinky stepped forward.

"Oh Dinky…I miss you so much…I haven't been able to stop crying since you died…you were a really amazing pony and I don't think you should have gone so young." She nudged her friend behind her.

"I…I can't do it…" A small, timid looking unicorn was shaking, tears streaming down her face. The crusaders moved to the front again.

"We'll never forget you Dinky." They chanted. With heads hung to the floor, the young foals walked back down and stood near their family members. Fate went and took his position back in front of the podium. Rainbow took this as her cue. Backing away from crowd, she flew around the back of the town to find a dense rain cloud. She flew through it and gathered her speed, a rainbow flowing out behind her, sparkling from the dewdrops of the cloud. She rounded the rainbow right over the funeral, everypony's eyes glistening at the sight. She tore open the clouds above them, allowing the sunlight to come through, casting a ray down upon the coffin. The rainbow shimmered as though it were alive in the sunlight. The light reflected from the tears of the ponies below as the coffin was put back on its carriage. Sparkler, Derpy, Dasher and Carrot Top hopped in the passenger area as it rolled down the street, ponies throwing flowers after the deceased. The sound of a lyre playing them out could be heard until they gradually drifted out of earshot.

* * *

><p>The four ponies didn't talk as the carriage bumped down a gravel road. Sparkler rested her head on Dasher's shoulder whilst she stared blankly out the window. Carrot Top and Derpy exchanged glances every now and again. After a short while, the carriage jerked to a stop. The four ponies hopped down from the carriage and looked at the view in front of them. A graveyard sat, stretching out all around them. Fog hung dense, blocking their view of anything distant. A sharp cough came from one of the ponies and they knew it was an indication to get moving. They followed the two ponies pulling the cart down a winding path. The only noise that escaped the ponies was the clopping of the ponies' hooves and the occasional jolt of the carriage wheels. Approaching a fenced off area, the carriage came to a stop. Derpy looked down at the hole that had been carved into the ground, a headstone resting at the top. Using their magic, the carriage unicorns carefully elevated the coffin up and lowered it slowly into the hole. Nopony took their eyes off it as it gradually sunk until it rested on the bottom of the pit. Derpy's lip quivered as they released their magic. From out of the mist, a couple of rough looking Earth ponies came and began to shovel dirt back into the hole.<p>

"Would you and your company like a lift back to Ponyville?" The elder looking of the unicorns addressed Derpy. She glanced round before slowly nodding her head.

"Could we just have a few minutes?" She croaked.

"Of course."

The four ponies huddled together, watching silently as dirt brushed across the shovel, covering the coffin. Tears started to leak from Derpy, hitting the grass below and dampening it to give a dew-like effect. Through the fog, the slight shimmering of a rainbow could still be seen. Sparkler stepped forward.

"She's in a better place now."

The group shared one last glance before climbing back into the carriage. A slight smile wavered on Sparkler's face as she was glad that Dinky was finally able to rest. Derpy rested her head on the ledge of the window and looked back towards the grave, slowly being enveloped by the fog.

"Goodbye Dinky…"


	9. Expecting

_3 Months Later…_

Carrot Top trudged downstairs. Her normally poofy mane was hanging down her sides slightly with occasional hairs sticking out at odd angles. She had bags under her eyes which were only emphasised by the shadows. She walked in her living room to find the usual scenario. Derpy was on the sofa, not in a much better state than Carrot Top herself. Her derped eyes were bloodshot and she swayed slightly.

The last three months had not been kind. Whilst the atmosphere in Ponyville had gradually gotten back to it's usual cheery self, Derpy had started to show a number of problems. Along with Sparkler they had planned to return to their house. However Derpy found herself shaking in fear, and was unable to bring herself to walk inside.

"_Derpy, are you ok?"_

_The grey mail pony stood, frozen, unable to move her hooves another step forward. Her house was just a few mere feet in front of her. She'd told herself that everything was over, but at the sight of her house, her memories just came flooding back. A pink hoof waved in front of her face._

"_Mum? What's wrong?"_

_Derpy shook violently. "I…I can't do it! I can't go b…back in there."_

_It was then that Sparkler made the decision to sell the house. It would only go to waste with just her living in a three bedroom house. Carrot Top gladly accepted Derpy as a permanent house guest, and Dasher was more than delighted to have Sparkler move in with him._

However it wasn't just her house that proved to be a problem. Every day Derpy would seem to gradually lose a bit of her grip on sanity. She would still panic to no end when fire was involved in anything. Carrot Top would find her screaming in the middle of the night, of collapsing during the day and crying out things that nopony could seem to understand. This was straining Carrot Top, who found it hard to get a decent night's sleep. She had to care for Derpy as though she were a foal who needed constantly looking out for. She'd been to various doctors, but none could determine exactly what was wrong with her. They even tried putting her in the care of a hospital institution, but they found that without her friends, she was even more unstable.

Ponies visited her often, especially Rainbow Dash but none of them seemed to help her. She had been forced to quit her job as a mail mare after her instability was affecting her too much. There was the occasional day where she would get by fine, but it never lasted long after that. Carrot Top often fell into tears herself, wondering if her friend was ever going to recover.

* * *

><p>Sparkler trotted around Ponyville, an extra spring in her step. Her face seemed to wear a smile that never faltered. Unlike her mum, Sparkler had recovered fine, and was back to her normal self in no time. Like Carrot Top, she had become increasingly worried about her mum. She'd tried to have talks with her all the time, none of them coming out successful. Sparkler was hoping that after tonight, she may have some extra special news that could just lift her mum's spirits.<p>

She picked up her pace, almost bouncing along like Pinkie Pie. She rounded a corner till she came to an all too familiar shop. The window frames were painted a brilliant purple, and the shop's name "Dazzlers" ran across the top in gold lettering. This shop was the jewellery store that Dasher owned. Due to it being the only jewellery shop around, it was extremely popular, and brought in a strong source of income. A bell rang as she skipped through the door, almost knocking over a surprised Rarity.

"Oh Rarity, I'm so sorry." Unable to contain herself she let a little giggle slip. Thankfully Rarity saw the light side of things.

"Oh no worries Sparkler, I could understand how hard it must be to stay away from all that." She turned her head to look at Dasher before winking and walking out the store, leaving a blushing Sparkler behind. Dasher turned his head at the sudden commotion, grinning when he saw his company.

"Hey baby, did you get it?"

Sparkler rested her front hooves on the counter, levitating a bag next to him. "I sure did. And as soon as you finish up here, we'll find out for sure." She leaned forward, planting a gentle kiss on his lips. He was tempted to pull her closer, but the familiar sound of the door jingled behind them, followed by a bunch of chatty teenage ponies. Sparkler leaned back and smiled at him, eyelids half lowered.

"I'll see you after work big boy." She turned and swayed her tail, casting him one last glance before trotting out the door. Her heart was fluttering, excited for tonight. She had to do something to pass the time, so she headed over to Carousel Boutique. A nice talk with Rarity was always relaxing.

Due to her speed from being excited, she reached Carousel Boutique just as Rarity was unlocking the door.

"Oh Sparkler, you just seem to pop up everywhere!"

"Hehe, I'm feeling a little fast today. You doing anything? I've got a few hours till Dazzlers closes."

The entire time that she was talking, Rarity had her eye on her bag. She smiled. "Oh do come in dear, I'm sure you might have something to talk about."

Sparkler cocked her head, but followed Rarity in nonetheless. She shut the front door behind her, tossing the keys aside.

"So I see we've doing a bit of shopping today huh dear?"

"Oh yes, just a few, erm, supplies." Sparkler darted her eyes around a bit.

"Sparkler, when you've been around shopping as much as a lady like myself has, you can recognise bags from shops all around Equestria. I know what you've been shopping for." She winked at Sparkler before sipping the tea she had served. Sparkler had changed to a slight darker shade of pink.

"Oh Sparkler honey do you really think you are?" Rarity leaned in, her blue eyes glistening.

"I really hope so; it's what we were trying for."

Rarity squealed. "Oh I am so happy for you darling!"

Both mares conversed for what only seemed like a couple of minutes, but the hours flew by. When the sound of the clock striking five came, Sparkler bid Rarity goodbye and cantered back towards the Jewellers. She got there just as Dasher was locking up.

"Let's go let's go!" Sparkler impatiently grabbed Dasher's hoof, literally galloping back towards there house. A surprised Dasher quickly managed to keep peace, and they raced up the front door. They arrived there panting and shared a laugh before going inside. Sparkler levitated her bag onto the table.

"This is it."

"Yeah." Dasher smiled, planting a kiss on Sparkler's cheek. She grabbed the bag and trotted upstairs. Dasher sat and waited patiently at the bottom of the stairs.

Sparkler went into the bathroom, shutting the door behind her. She put the bag down in front of her and levitated out the object that had been waiting for her all day; her pregnancy test.

Dasher sat waiting, anxiousness starting to grab at him a little bit. The ticking of the clock nearby seemed amplified in the quiet room. 'Should I go up there?' He thought. 'What if it's negative and she's upset?' Just as he was about to get up, a piecring squeal came from upstairs. A flurry of pink raced down the stairs and tackled him onto the sofa. Sparkler's grin stretched from ear to ear.

"It's positive!"

Dasher smiled and embraced her in a hug. "I'm so happy for us baby."

She laid on top of him as his rang his hoof through her mane. "I can't believe we're finally starting a family…" Tears of joy began to rise and drip down her cheek. Dasher nuzzled her before pulling her into a deep kiss. She moaned as his tongue explored her mouth. However she quickly pulled away, leaving a slightly dazed Dasher.

"My mum! We have to tell her the good news! Maybe this will help her get out that state she's been in lately. There'll be another little foal for her to run around after."

"That's a great idea! Let's go!"

Sparkler was off the sofa and out the door with speed that Rainbow Dash would be jealous of. With Dasher following close behind, they cantered down through Ponyville to Carrot Top's house.


	10. Together Again

Carrot Top was in the kitchen cooking a meal for her and Derpy. Her head spun a little as the lack of sleep caught up to her. She held a pot of boiling water which she was just above to put on the stove when-

"Carrot?"

The suddenness of Derpy's voice caught her off guard, causing her to drop the entire pan. Luckily most of the water splashed away from her, but a bit of it caught a small portion of her hoof. She cursed and hopped away from the pan. Derpy stood in the doorway looking horrified. A visible red mark was now appearing where it had burnt her.

"C…Carrot I'm s…so sorry!"

She sighed. "It's fine Derpy, a little cold water will cool it down."

"I…I burnt y…you…"

"You just surprised me that was all; I should have been paying attention more."

"T…the entire p…pan could have g...gone over you…s…scalding you to d…death…" Derpy shook violently; threatening to fall to the floor in her legs shook anymore. "Y...you could of d…died…" Derpy shook her head. Carrot Top walked to wards her in an attempt to calm her down but Derpy only backed away from her with every step.

"N…no…stay away from me! I…I might hurt you even more!" Her voice became louder every time she screeched, tears leaked from her eyes, drenching the sagged skin underneath that had appeared from lack of sleep. Before Carrot could say a word, her wings sprung from her sides and she flung herself round the corner, flying towards the front door.

"Derpy wait!" Shaking her head to try and clear it a bit, she started off at a trot. The front door slammed open where Derpy had raced through it. Carrot sped up to a canter as she began to lose sight of the grey mare. She jumped out the door looking around drastically. She spotted Derpy flying towards…the Everfree Forest. Carrot gulped. 'I need to find help!' she thought. At that moment, Dasher and Sparkler came running round the corner, gasping for breath.

"Sparkler! Dasher! Oh I'm so glad you're here, you have to help!"

The smiles vanished from their faces and they forgot about their news. Fright wrote itself all over Carrot's face.

"What's happened?"

"It's Derpy, she just ran out of the house and she's flying towards the Everfree Forest!"

Sparkler blinked and stuttered. Dasher quickly stepped forward. "We need to get Rainbow Dash! She's probably our fastest hope of finding her! Carrot, Sparkler, follow Derpy to the edge of the forest but don't go in, it's too dangerous! I'll go get Dash!"

The mares nodded and swiftly cantered off in the direction that Derpy had flew. Lighting his horn, Dasher quickly teleported himself to underneath where Dash's house was.

"Rainbow Dash!" He yelled. There was no answer. He shouted again, attracting some stares from the local town's folk.

"RAINBOW DASH!"

A blue head popped over the side of the cloud mansion above him. "What do you want?"

"Come down here, quickly it's an emergency!"

Rainbow Dash bolted to the ground. "What is it?"

"It's Derpy, she's flying off to the Everfree Forest!" Dasher turned and cantered back towards the forest, Rainbow flying alongside him with ease.

"But why has she gone in there?"

"I don't know, there wasn't time to explain but we have to find her fast."

"Fast huh? You came to the right mare!" Rainbow sped up ahead of Dasher. Soon, two shapes came into view. She grinded to a halt next to Carrot and Sparkler.

"Oh Dash, I'm glad you came so quick. This is where Derpy went into the forest!"

"I'm on it!" With a flurry of her wings, she was off, leaving a rainbow in her wake. Dasher soon caught up to the two mares, and they waited anxiously for Rainbow Dash to return.

Rainbow swerved in and out of trees, narrowly dodging their branches, looking for signs of the grey mail mare. A few snapped branches told her that something had been here recently. Her fear of the Everfree Forest and all it's dangerous creatures that lied within vanished; she had to find her friend. Her head shook vigorously from left to right, looking for any signs of movement. She eventually came to a small clearing. She thudded down, tucking her wings in for a moment. She glanced around and sighed.

"There's no way to tell which way she went…" She muttered to herself. The darkness made it hard to see anything more than several feet away. She strained her ears, listening for anything that could give her a clue. Then she heard it. It sounded distant, but there was no mistaking it; it was the roar of a dragon. Her heart in her mouth, she instantly flew up and followed the noise. As she flew on, the noise became louder and more clearer. It was only when she saw a burst of fire rip up through the trees that she stopped.

"I can't just fly down there, I might be killed!" Dropping her height, she continued on through the growth of the forest, allowing easy hiding places if she needed it. Then she spotted something moving. She ducked down, only to realise the familiar coat of none other than Derpy. A smile crossed her face, but it quickly died down again. Only a few feet away from Derpy, was the dragon. 'I have to fly in now and rescue her!' Rainbow went to move forward but couldn't. Her back legs have become entangled in vines from the forest. She panicked and began kicking her legs but it had her wrapped tight.

Derpy stared at the dragon. She couldn't fly away, she'd smashed her left wing on the panic of flying through the forest. The dragon lifted it's head up and took a big breath in. In an instant, it threw it's head down, and a blazing ball of fire came hurtling towards her.

"Derpy run!" She heard the distant voice of her friend but it was no use. Her eyes were penetrated on the burning weapon hurtling towards her. The last thing she saw was Dinky in the flames, running towards her, glad to be reunited with her mother.

Rainbow looked on horrified. The flames had just completely engulfed her friend, and all that remained was a pile of black ashes. Tears leaked from her eyes as she finally managed to slip her legs free. The dragon had wandered off, satisfied that it's intruder was gone. She fluttered over to the remains of the broken mail mare. She sniffed, a single tear dropping onto the pile.

"Maybe it's what you wanted…to be reunited with your daughter…" She gazed up to the night sky, clear as ever, it's stars twinkling above. "We're all going to miss you Derpy."

Hanging her head, she flew upwards till she was completely above the forest. She then drifted back to the three ponies waiting anxiously at the edge of the forest. She landed next to them with a small thud, not daring to meet their eyes.

"Couldn't you find her?" Sparkler leaned forward, her questioning gaze staring into Rainbow.

"I found her…but not before Dinky did first…she's dead…"

The trio let out audible gasps, and Sparkler embraced a distraught Rainbow Dash. Rainbow sniffed, her voice cracking slightly. "A dragon….it did it…she didn't get out the way of it's flame…"

"Perhaps she truly couldn't…"

The four ponies stood there for a while, embracing each other tightly.

Carrot spoke up. "It's sad that she's gone…but maybe this is the end of the nightmare. Derpy is finally back with her colt and their daughter. All of her suffering ends tonight."

Sparkler gazed at her. "You're right…and as her eldest daughter…I need to make her proud." She looked down at her stomach. "You're going to be the perfect child…just like Dinky…

The End.

_Thank you all for reading! I must admit this probably isn't my best work, but it was my first attempt at writing a longer story. I probably could have made it longer, but I got a little bored halfway through._

_I'd appreciate any comments/criticism you have or ways to improve my writing further. My next story is going to be a lot longer, and I'm going to take more time on it so that it is as perfect as I can make it._


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